Last night as we returned to the hotel we all jumped into the lift, closed the door and nothing!!! You guessed it trapped in the lift due to too much weight. Rang alarm button and desk clerk came to the rescue. We didn't see the sign that said 5 persons.
Today is the Ancient city of Troy and Pergamon. The drive is quite long and the landscape is dry and quite hilly and the road tends to come toward the water before moving away only to return again. Wind farms are prominent throughout as is solar hot water on most homes.
Troy is set on a high outcrop that looks across fertile plains down to the Dardinelles. 7 times the site was rebuilt over due to new rulers or earthquake. It proved to be a good spot as the Spartans lay the place under seige for 10 years after Helen of Troy left the Ruler of Sparta to be here. Very interesting from a historical point of view and to see what I had read and heard about.
The afternoon saw us go to the Ancient ruins of Pergamon. As we approached from the distance columns appeared on top of a hill. As we got closer it got larger and larger. Bergama is the town directly below ( this is the new name of Pergamon). The bus climbed higher and higher to get to the ruins.
Built in 500BC it is awesome. The stone so precisely carved and stacked without the aid of concrete or stabilizer is impressive. As we walked around and learnt the history I could only marvel and imagine the town in it's glory days. The view over the valley and the township is breathtaking. It's inhabitants reached 140000 during the Roman period.
Another long day. The weather was 35 degrees and sunny today. Kusadasi is our town for bed tonight.
